The Colorado Avalanche are dangerously walking at the edge of elimination in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, just one bad game away from waving their NHL season goodbye. Ahead of a crucial elimination game against the Dallas Stars, a key teammate of Nathan MacKinnon dropped an honest admission, hoping to light a fire under the team.
History tends to repeat itself, and it may not take long for the Avalanche to witness a repetition of last year’s playoff elimination as they are down 2-3 in their series against the Stars. Dallas dispatched MacKinnon and Colorado during last year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs in the Western Conference Semifinals.
This time around, the Stars might knock the Avs out in an even earlier stage, as the two strong contenders in the West crossed paths in the opening round of their hunt for the Stanley Cup in the 2024-25 NHL season.
MacKinnon and the rest of the Avalanche will hope to stay alive and force a do-or-die game 7 back at American Airlines Center on May 3. On that note, Jonathan Drouin, who tallies 3 points in 5 games this series, voiced a bold statement, with a clear reminder for the locker room in Mile High City.
Nathan MacKinnon #29 of the Colorado Avalanche plays the Nashville Predators in the third period at Ball Arena on December 14, 2024.
“It’s desperation. It’s win or go home, so we don’t want our season to end,” Avalanche forward Jonathan Drouin stated ahead of Game 6 at Ball Arena, per DNVR Avalanche on X.
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Avalanche’s Gabriel Landeskog makes honest admission after Game 5 loss to Stars
Sink or swim
It may sound like a cliché, but the final win is always the toughest to secure in any Stanley Cup Playoffs series. Teams with their backs against the wall have nothing to lose—and they come out swinging, fighting for their season with everything they’ve got.
Colorado must embrace that mentality as they enter an elimination game in Denver. Charlie Coyle made sure to remind the roster of it, while sending a warning to the Stars.
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“I think when the pressure is on a little more, it brings out the best, especially this group,” Charlie Coyle said during his media availability prior to Game 6. “You’re forced to be prepared , be more focused in and that’s when your best comes out. We’ve been in [similar] positions before, individually and team-wise. We know what to expect.”
